Gaia's End
by Fallen-Angel-Umi
Summary: The year is 2033. Mutants, genetic altered humans, begin to appear throughout the lands. The government program, SOLDIERS, arises to silently rid the world of this problem. War ensues between the SOLDIERS and mutants. The end is here.
1. Chapter 1

~~_Hello all! Umi here! New here to FF ^^ Anywho, just gonna say, this is actually a really weird idea me and a fellow friend had. Will update daily, hopefully.. x) Avoir!~~_

_Disclaimer: I do not own FF7 or L4D. Sadly… because if I did, things would be totally different._

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><p>"Where are all the doctors? Somebody get a medic in here!" These phrases were thrown around the small camp as men and woman in uniforms rushed by. The only sounds that echoed in the camp were the moans and cries of the wounded, or the grieving. A young woman with her jet black hair in a ponytail walked by a patient, checked his vital signs and started walking off when suddenly a hand grabbed her wrist.<p>

"Please! I can't continue living like this!" The young woman looked down to the man lying on the cot and threw a disgusted look on her face. This man lying on the cot was dying, slowly but surely he was dying. He was one of the few unlucky people to still be alive after the explosions. His skin was peeling off, his eyes a devilish shade of red, and his grip on her wrist was starting to burn.

"Sir, I suggest you let go of my wrist or else." The young woman let out a low growl that anyone could have mistaken for a lions. The man just gripped her wrist tighter and continued to plead.

"Just get this over with! At least give me more morphine…please. I'm begging you." The man continued to grip her wrist as the heat seared across her arm.

"I gave you a chance to let go of me, now you've lost it." She starts to close her eyes. "You think that this is hell? Just wait." Suddenly the man screamed out and released her wrist and clutched his head in pain. Minutes later, the screaming stopped and the young woman opened her eyes to a body curled in the fetal position, chest no longer rising. Soon, another man with light brown curly hair came rushing up to the young woman and gasps when he sees the body.

"Tifa Lockhart! I told you not to use your powers like this! Now what are we going to tell the family? I just got through with reassuring them that he'd be alright." The man said as he shook his head.

"Tell them that he had a heart attack SSG Jones, and he was too weak to survive it. If they don't believe it, then report them to me. They'll have no memory of him afterwards." She turns to him and the pupils of her red wine eye starts to slant. "Do you want it done that way?"

"No...I'll go tell them." SSG Jones walks off and Tifa stands there, looking at the man she just killed.

_I __guess __this __is __what __happens __when __your __parents __work __at __a __nuclear __plant__… __You __get __mutated._


	2. Mutations Page Info

**((This is just the information about mutations, such as SOLDIERS and Mutants. This isn't necessary to read. Just saying now. :D))**

**Mutations**

**SOLDIERS**:  
>o Superhuman Strength<br>o Speed  
>o Agility<br>o Glow of the eyes

**Mutants:**

**Seekers**  
>Scouts- Seekers are like the scouts. They're really fast, like almost invisible fast and are sneaky and quiet, but can't fight well. They are primarily used as spies or ones to gather information without being seen or heard. They are valuable to a unit, however, do not commit to being one of the powerhouses on a team.<br>o Ability to control Gaia  
>o Stopping Time<br>o Heightened Senses  
>o Super Speed<br>o Agility  
>o Shifting Forms<p>

**Hunters**

Fighters- Hunters are quick too but they are brutal in a fist fight. They are agile, granted with incredible strength, awareness, and dexterity. Sight is usually damaged during the strain of mutation, but despite this, a Hunter's other senses are heightened rather considerably. It is possible that the screeching noises they make and the growling are a method of echolocation. Claws are also a notable addition to the mutation of the Hunters. These elongated nails are sharp and can withstand cutting through flesh and nicking bone without even the slightest fracture to the claws. It seems like the Hunter's mutation is the most violent, but not so much as physically changing. Sight is weakened, vocal cords are damaged significantly depending on strength of the strain, and hands have claws.

o Heightened Senses  
>o Shifting Forms<br>o Super Strength  
>o Ability to communicate with animals<br>o Accelerated Healing  
>o Invisibility<br>o Echolocation

**Chargers**

Physically Altered-Chargers are the physically altered ones, like ones with thick skin, skin that is harder to penetrate with weapons and they hit with fist attacks that dish out a lot of damage, but they are slow and cumbersome. When they pin you, however, it is almost impossible to overpower them unless they are stunned or killed.

o Heightened Senses  
>o Tough Skin<br>o Super Strength  
>o Accelerated Healing<p>

**Shades**  
>Tire Quickly-Shades are kind of like Seekers in the way of being able to move silently and they are more on the side of being able to melt into shadows. LIKE NINJAS! They are pretty strong, but tire quickly. Heightened senses include increased visual perception, allowing almost something similar to night vision. In further mutations of a strain, some Shades can manipulate the shadows into bending around them, making them almost invisible. They are very nimble and spry, the mutation causing heightened response time and allowing Shades to quick escape or hide. They are considerably strong, but they do not have to endurance of a Tank, Ironback, or Charger. The ability to copycat other mutation's abilities is a nod to Chameleon's own mutations. Shades, however, have a weaker strain and can only make a clone that will diminish in time or if the Shade is directly hit. Echolocation is a somewhat wrong phrase for what the Shade does to find enemies. Shadows stretch and extend if they latch onto another host while being manipulated by a Shade. It is like the shadows can fell the weight of silent footsteps and trial after it, but this only happens if the Shade strain is very complex.<br>o Heightened Senses  
>o Super Speed<br>o Agility  
>o Shadow Shifting<br>o Invisibility  
>o Superhuman Strength<br>o Copycat/Mimicry Abilities  
>o Echolocation<br>o Phasing  
>o Illusion<p>

**Ironbacks**  
>Physically Altered-Ironbacks are one of the physically mutated ones. They have shards of metal augmenting their bones, making them hard to break even for Tanks or Chargers. They are in appearance in small height of humans, but when too close, you can see glints of metal in their skin.<br>o Heightened Senses  
>o Bone Manipulation<br>o Tough Skin  
>o Super Strength<p>

**Berserkers**  
>Adrenaline Rush-Berserkers are beings with an extra helping of adrenaline and can call upon it. They do use weapons, like guns and such, but when they are harmed (these are the people who haven't figured out how their mutations work), they react violent and with a burst of super human strength.<br>o Superhuman Strength  
>o Heightened Senses<br>o Accelerated Healing

**Tanks**  
>Superhuman Muscle Built-Tanks are massive, bodies completely packed with mutated muscles juiced with adrenaline. They are fast and hit like a train. They are a distant cousin of the strain that created the berserkers. They have developed immense, thick muscles that not only indicate their incredible strength and endurance, but make it nearly bulletproof.<br>o Heightened Senses  
>o Super Strength<br>o Tough Skin

**Chameleons**  
>Complex Mutant-Chameleons are a complex strain of various mutations. It can either be mutations that allow the host to change appearance or blend. Chameleons can also have heightened perception of sight and touch. They can see very far off, making them very good snipers or they can change the texture and mass of an object to change its appearance or consistency.<p>

o Copycat/Mimicry Abilities  
>o Heightened Senses<br>o Energy Sourcing  
>o Biological Manipulation<br>o Psionic blast  
>o Density ControlDisintegration

**Illusion**- Ability to alter or deceive the perceptions of another. Can be sensory, a light or sound-based effect, or an alteration of mental perceptions.  
>Energy Sourcing - Ability to draw power from large or small but abundant sources of energy, such as turning kinetic energy into physical blasts or converting solar energy into other forms. Sometimes based on proximity to source, sometimes stored for future use.<p>

**Mimicry/Copycat**- Ability to copy or absorb another's powers or skills.

**Accelerated Healing**- Ability to heal rapidly from any injury; the rate of recovery varies from character to character. Can sometimes result in the slowing of aging.

**Shifting Forms/Animal Mimicry**- Ability to transform into substance touched. /Ability to take on animal forms. May be able to take on the abilities of the altered form. /Ability to take on the abilities of certain animals.

**Bone Manipulation**- Ability to manipulate the bones in one's own body. This includes, but is not limited to, the generation of new bone mass, projecting bones out from the skin or rearranging one's own bones.

**Echolocation-**Ability to determine location of items in the environment by use of reflected sound waves, whether generated by the character or ambient sound. Also known as sonar or radar sense.

**Invisibility**- Ability to render the user unseen to the naked eye.

**Superhuman Strength**- Ability to have a level of physical strength much higher than normally possible given their proportions.

**Heightened Senses**- Ability to see, smell, taste, feel and/or hear more than a normal human.

**Psionic Blast**- Ability to overload another's mind causing pain, memory loss, lack of consciousness, vegetative state or death after having created a psionic link into that individual's mind.

**Shadow Shifting**- Ability to create or manipulate darkness, often by mentally accessing a dimension of dark energy and manipulating it.

**Density Control/Disintegration**- Ability to increase or decrease the natural density of an object and/or one's self. /Ability to disintegrate matter through touch or through beams.

**Phasing**- Ability to phase through solid matter without harm.

**Biological Manipulation**- Ability to control all aspects of a living creature's biological make-up. This includes, but is not limited to, genetic alterations, physical distortion/augmentations, healing, disease, and biological functions.


	3. Chapter 2

_~~(A/N: Okay, so this isn't going to be exactly like FF7, but I am using bits and pieces of it. Note, that I will not follow everything that had happened in FF7. Anyway, enjoy, R&R please! :D_

_~Umi out~~_

**Disclaimer: I do not own FF7.. T.T**

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><p>A pair of glowing eyes the color of lightning blue were floating in the darkness. Suddenly, that only color in the room disappeared.<p>

_I __want __out. __I __didn__'__t __sign __up __for __this._

"His vital signs are fine, physiological senses are in check and he seems to be taking in the serum very well. All we need to do is now is wait for it to kick in and change him."

_Voices. __Is __that__…__the __doctor?_

"How did you get him in here anyway, Doc?"

_The __director? __What __is __he __doing __here?_

"It was easy. All I did was ask him..."

_~Flashback~_

There was an older man in a gray lab coat with a clip board in his lap sitting near another man with blond, unnaturally spiky hair, in the latest military uniform.

"I understand that you want to be in our SOLDIER program." The man in the lab coat said as he wrote some things down on his clip board.

"Yes sir." The man with the uniform said. The man in the lab coat nodded and looked stood up and starting observing the man. He wrote some more info onto his clip board and looked back up to him.

"So Cloud Strife…what makes you think that I'll let you in on this program?" The older man asked as he folded his arms over his clip board and peered at him.

"Well sir, I'm qualified in the physical, mental and emotional stages. Also, I'm trained in combat and can handle any weapon. And I'm ready to serve my country by any means, sir." Cloud said as he nodded his head.

"Very well, then. You do understand why we have this program right?" The man asked as he wrote more notes down.

"Yes sir. It's to get rid of the mutated, special mutated and those…monsters." Cloud said. The older man nodded his head and wrote more notes down.

"Good, good. Alright, one last question. You do understand the risks? Some of you may not come out alive." The older man asked as he peered at Cloud.

Cloud nodded his head, his blue eyes piercing the man in front of him.

"Very well. First sign this, and then follow me. We'll begin the program." The older man said as he held out the clipboard with a pen in the other hand. Cloud grabbed the pen and skimmed over the document the man held in his hand. Then with he signed the document in a hurried scrawl. The man then took the pen and document and started walking to the back door. Once they went through the door, they were greeted by the toxic smell of chemicals, and several men and women in lab coats rush by.

"By the way, I'll be the man you should look for after you wake up." As the man spoke, he slipped his hand over Cloud's mouth and nose covering it with a cloth soaked in chloroform.

_~End Flashback~_

The same pair of eyes came into view again as the doctor and the director looked into his "pod". The doctor then pulled out a needle and injected the serum into his body. Once again, those pair of eyes disappeared.


	4. Chapter 3

_~~A/N: Ah, seems that I'm updating pretty fast.. *sigh* Hopefully I'll get some people to read my story! ^^" Forgot to put the disclaimer last time, so yeah.~~_

**Disclaimer: I do not own FF7 or any other material used in this writing.**

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><p>Chapter 3:<p>

Tifa sat in a small chair, the wood frame splintering and slowly rotting away, her jet black hair falling around her face as she held her face in her hands, her elbows resting on her knees. Her eyes were closed shut, her brow wrinkled in anger as she listened intently to the medics yelling at each other as they ran to and from cots, carrying clipboards, plastic gloves scattering the floor, some covered in blood, others covered in yellow pus.

Infection. That's how it all started for me. Just a small cough, then mucus came, then the high fevers and delusions, the series of fainting and comatose states.

Tifa was only 5 years old when all of this started to effect on her.

_*flashback*_

Her parents had powers. When Tifa was young, she'd see her parent's walk through walls, talk telepathically and changing into animals. But those were only a few things that they could do. It never scared her; she saw these kinds of things every day. Years pass, her parents making her keep a little secret about their powers. But then, when Tifa was 5, she started having seizures, and within those seizures, she would experience waves of pain through extended hearing, her taste buds would explode as her mouth gaped for unexisting air, her eyes would go sharp, seeing the molecules of the air, the sharp stitches of a shirt, the small amounts of dirt clumped on the ground. As her body racked with pain, Tifa could feel herself changing, in not only appearance, but mentally. Her body's chemical numbers changed, her DNA had altered, and she was terrified. She didn't want anything like this to happen to her….

_*end flashback*_

Tifa's head snapped up from thought, her chocolate wine eyes pupils dilated, a low growl emitting from the back of her throat. She quickly got up from her chair, the sound of creaking and the wood moaning from the loss of pressure, and walked out of the tent, the growl so quiet and fierce that only an Infected could hear. She smelled the air, searching for the strong scent of Mako, of the stuff that nearly killed her parents. When she exited the main medic tent, she found the scent of the Mako, clinging strongly to a man passed out on the ground near the side of the tent, his clothes drenched, and the Mako come off his body in waves with very beat of his heart. Tifa closed her eyes, a small headache coming on, and made a little invisible barrier that covered them. She kept her eyes close, so she could concentrate on the invisibility, and used her heightened senses to locate the man. When she found him she had reached for his bicep, the cloth there torn, and felt freezing cold skin, still wet and she could feel something churning inside his bloodstream, his heart rate erratic and she could hear him mutter words, words in different languages that she couldn't understand. Once she found his body, she made a small biological manipulation on the man, making him look invisible to the human eye. She opened her eyes, keeping the man invisible and let the barrier around them down. She looked down at the man, his body visible to her, and took his Mako drenched body over her shoulder and carried him to a nearby medic van, tipping him into the back and she closed the door and headed to the front, but SSG Jones was standing at the driver's door, blocking her way.

"I can't let you go Tifa. We still need your help here."

Tifa closed her eyes, but when she opened them, her eyes were no longer the warm chocolate wine but black and white, and she growled at him, the sound similar to that of a lions, but SSG Jones didn't move.

"What do you have in the van Tifa? You know you can't experiment anymore. These people aren't dying from the same thing."

Tifa looked away, the growl gone, and when she looked back at him, her eyes were a light brown, and they held such sorrow and pain, that it was strange seeing it come from Tifa.

"Jones…. You know I hate it when you block me from that thick head of yours. I lose everything I have, no mutations, no nothing. It scares me; not being able to do anything, being normal scares me Jones."

Jones listens to Tifa, a part of him softens and he shakes his head, a sly smile on his lips.

"You know it's not my fault. You taught me when I first entered the Marines. You found an infected… didn't you?"

Tifa grins at him and her eye turns blood red and a small purr emits from her throat, and Jones eyes open wide and he backs up.

"Shit, Tifa don't kill me."

Jones keeps backing away from the van, and Tifa continues to grin, the purr loud and clear and she walks to the door of the driver side, opening it and slipping inside, but before she closed the door, she looks back at Jones, the grin gone and the purr a low growl.

"SSG Jones, I told you to keep your head straight. Let one emotion loose, and you're dead."

Tifa flicks her wrist at him, and SSG Jones freezes in place, and his brow furrows in pain and annoyance.

"Tifa, just report back in by the end of the week."

Tifa gives him a quick curt nod and slams the door shut and revs the engine, then she drives off to the highway, dodging people and tents as she drives, and once she enters the highway, she sticks her hand out the window and waves at SSG Jones and his body relaxes and he yells at her, knowing she can hear him.

"You better come back MSG Lockhart!"


	5. Chapter 4

_~~Yay! New update! This one is slightly longer, so I hope you guys enjoy it! :D~~_

**Disclaimer: Don't own.**

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><p>Chapter 4<p>

_*flashback*_

As the doctor inserted the SOLDIER serum into Cloud, the director had walked out, not wanting to hear the watery screams come from the pod containing Cloud. But just before he exited the room, he turned his head to look back at their new recruit and a pair of striking blue eyes stared lifelessly at the director. The director shuddered and turned his head back to his direct line of vision and continued to walk out the door.

_*end flashback*_

Cloud kept his eyes shut, wanting this to be nothing but a horrible nightmare, something that he can wake up from at any second and realize that it wasn't real, that it would never happen and couldn't ever happen. But as Cloud floated in the pod, he thought that no nightmare would compare to this pain he was in. He felt the serum flow through his veins, thick and prickly, sticking to the walls of his veins, the tissue absorbing it, the serum dividing itself up, becoming so miniscule that it attached itself to his DNA, changing and manipulating it. As the serum manipulated his DNA, his features started to change, his muscles getting bigger and tougher, and his brain turning into a human calculator for any situation, his senses heightening. He could hear the trickle of the water in the pod, he could smell the Mako in the water, and he could feel the particles of it clinging to his skin. As the serum continued to flow through his skin, the pain got stronger, causing him to slowly drift into unconsciousness.

_Breathe __in. __Breathe __out_.

Cloud shudders as he breathes, some of the green Mako water entering through his nose, the oxygen not in his nose fully.

_Breathe __in. __Breathe __out_.

He tries to bring his arms up, to push the oxygen further up so he doesn't drown, but there's a belt holding his wrists close to the wall of the pod. He moves his body, finding that his whole body has been restrained.

_Breathe __in. __Breathe __out_.

Cloud slowly opened his eyes, expecting his vision to be blurred but they weren't. He could see clearly, see the green specks of Mako in the water, see people 20 feet away so clearly, he could see the thickness of the glass, keeping him away from the oxygen filled world.

_Breathe __in. __Breathe __out_.

He lifted his arms slightly, judging how tight and how long the harness was.

_Breathe __in.__Breathe __out_.

Just as Cloud was going to snap the harness from his wrists, the doctor came in, reading his clipboard as he checked Cloud's vitals, and finally, he looked up at Cloud, the least bit surprised to see Cloud conscious, and staring deathly at him.

_Breathe __in.__Breathe __out_.

"So you're awake now? Good, means that you've taken the serum and Mako perfectly."

_Breathe __in__…__._

Cloud jerked his arms, the harnesses coming off of his wrists, and he reaches down, snaps the other harnesses off and tucks his knees to his chest and kicks the glass, cracking it.

_Breathe __out__…_

The doctor watches in horror as Cloud kicks the glass, cracking it. Cloud punches the glass, sending the shards flying as the Mako induced water spills out of the pod, sending the doctor backwards, his head crashing into a table, knocking him out. Cloud stands fully in the pod, no longer suspended in the Mako water and pulls the oxygen out of his nose, pulling the wires and strings attached to him off and he blinks his eyes, trying to get the green film to disappear from his vision. He climbs out of the pod, looking at his surroundings and picks the doctor up, taking his coat and slipping it on over his drenched clothes and staggers out of the room and into the main hallway of the building, keeping his hand on the wall as he starts to run out of the building, his eyes still not adjusting to normal color. But when he exits the building, he notices that it's no longer quiet, but there are tents surrounding the area, his head pounding with a headache as his heightened senses picking up every scent, every word and every feeling that was out there. He stumbled to a medical tent, searching for an empty cot, or some cotton to stuff his ears with, anything to drown out the noise. But just before he reached the tent, he passed out, his brow furrowed in confusion and pain.

_Mako.__It__'__s __still __around __me. __I __want __it __off, __away __from __me._

Cloud continued to lie on the floor, unconscious, but still very aware of what was going on. He could hear the people shuffling about in the medic tent, the grass bending and dying as the medics ran to and fro, the families crying and moaning, the wounded getting sick and throwing their stomachs contents onto the bloodied grass and dirt. Then he heard the creak of a wooden chair, and a low growl, similar to that of a canine. The sound came closer, sounding more feminine and when the noise was next to his ear, he froze up. It was an automatic thing for him to do, but he smelled something off. This thing wasn't an animal, it was human, a woman. She was Mutated, third strain and was using her powers just then.

_No! __Go __away! __I __don__'__t __want __your __help_.

But his words didn't come out, just mixed phrases of what he wanted to say in different languages. Then, a fiery hand touched his bicep, sending jolts through his body, pleasure of the warmth mixing with the pain of the serum, causing him to rock back in his mind.

_Go __away__… __I __don__'__t __want __false __hope __from __you__…_

Then, the fiery hand was gone from his arm, but then his body felt like water, mixing into the Earth. Then he felt like air, but the air became fire, so hot and irresistible. His airy body melded to the fire, wanting more of the warmth and security. But then the fire was gone, and he felt cold, clinging to something that smelled of metallic and rusting. He tried to open his eyes, but it wouldn't cooperate. He couldn't move any of his body parts.

_Why __is __it __cold? __Where __did __Fire __go?_

Then he felt nothing, he could only smell the stench of blood and hear the cries of the mourning, but he couldn't feel anything else. He felt weak, tired, like he wanted to sleep forever. But then, right when he was going to drift into sleep, his ears popped, and he could hear clearly, his nose was filled with the horrific stench of the dead, and his head pounded with the sound of a low purr.

"SSG Jones, I told you to keep your head straight. Let one emotion loose, and you're dead."

_That__'__s __Fire!_

Cloud's heart leapt when he heard the woman's voice, but it was a strange feeling, he's never had to experience it. But there was a low growl emitting from her, and it reverberated all the way to him. Then, there was the sound of a car door slamming and the revving of an engine. The structure that he was on vibrated, then he was tossed around, he could hear the cries of people yelling…..at him? Then, he was no longer tossed around, and was lying flat, the hum of an engine close to his ears and he could smell Fire, her scent surrounding him, making his head spin, his thoughts all fuzzy, out of control. Then, the hum of the engine was gone, and there were creaks, and the scent of Fire came closer, stronger and then he felt Fire. Her fiery hand was on his forehead, the jolts of fire going through him, and a small sigh escapes his lips.

"Can you talk? Move? Anything?"

Cloud listens to her voice, concentrating on how it sounds, recording it to this memory. Then he finally understands what she asked, and he tries to move his hand and say something.

_Fire__…_

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><p><em>~So yeah, you guys should R&amp;R.. and subscribe! :D~<em>


	6. Chapter 5

_~~So __I__'__m __getting __the __hang __of __writing __Cloti __fics __(^^)Y __Hope __you __guys __enjoy!_

**Disclaimer: ****Don't ****own.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 5<strong>

"Fire."

She heard that one lone word, breathed through the air so softly, so sweetly that it ached in her body, ached with a heart wrenching throb. She looks down at the man, trying to figure out if he had said anything, but she sees no sign of him have been waken up. Slowly, she retracts her hand from his forehead and she stands up in the van, rummaging around in all of the medical kits, searching for an IV pack.

_I __heard __him __though. __I __know __it._

Finally, she finds an IV pack and she rips open the package to reveal a small bag of an IV drip, ready to use, and she turns the man over so he's lying on his back, and she reaches into one of the medical kits and grabs a rubber glove, slipping them on and readies his arm for the IV.

"Try to hold still, okay?"

She wasn't sure if he could even hear her, let alone understand a word she was saying, but she had to do something, had to preoccupy her mind with words. She applied the simple IV to the man's arm, and she hung the IV pack on from the ceiling of the van, and she sat down, looking at the man.

_Just __why __are __you __drenched __in __Mako?_

The man continues to stay in the coma, and Tifa shakes her head, and she gets up, climbing back to the front of the van, sitting down in the leather seat, her hands resting lightly on the cool steering wheel, her eyes fixed on the bland landscape in front of her. Barren gray mountains lined the horizon to her right, and a flock of mutated birds, or what seemed to be birds, rested to the left, their bills poking at the absurdly green grass.

_Those __mountains__… __They__'__re __the __cause __of __this.__Those __stupid __nuclear __factories __up __there._

She grips the steering wheel, her eyes closed tight as she tried to lose the memories, the memories that weren't hers, memories that shouldn't even be in her mind.

_It__'__s __their __fault __I__'__m __like __this._

She takes a deep breath in, letting the air out through clenched teeth, and she opens her eyes, looking to the front of her. The roads were clear, clear and empty of anyone normal. It was nearly impossible to find someone normal. Normal wasn't in the dictionary anymore. Normal was what caused her to change. Normal is what is making her remember things.

_This __has __to __stop._

Memories came flooding into Tifa's mind, memories that weren't hers. Memories that were supposed to be in someone else's body. Tifa gripped the steering wheel tight, and she tried to remember which memories were hers and which weren't, trying to sort them out, lock them away. Slowly, the memories subdued, and she opened her eyes, looking at the now dark horizon.

"Time to go…"

Tifa sighed to herself, and she revved the engine of the van and drove towards the mountains, her head lights off. Everyone was indoors, no one was out, and Tifa continued driving towards the mountains. Slowly, a house came into view on the right, and Tifa drove to it, slowing her van down to a creep and she stopped at the porch, unlocking the car and sitting in the seat for a while. Her house's lights were off, and the area seemed still and quiet, nothing moved, not even the wind. Her home was deserted, and no one ever bothered to reach to where she was at. No one.

"Fire…"

Tifa snapped her head to the back of the van, looking at the man lying on the floor of the van, noticing that a white lab coat was on the man's body.

_He__'__s __from __the __institution__…_

She opens her door and jumps out, the keys of the van dangling from her pocket, and she goes to the back of the van, opening the door and scrunches her nose up. The scent of Mako was getting stronger, and the man was still alive, his heart pumping harder and louder. Tifa tried to focus on anything but the man, and she shut herself off from the rest of the world, ignoring the sounds, scents, tastes, everything, that dealt with him and Mako. She climbed into van in a daze and grabbed the IV and the man and carried him into her house, nudging her unlocked front door open. She turned to her right and grunted at the weight of the man, and laid him down on the couch, hooking the IV so it's upright. She looked down at his clothes and nearly gagged, the smell of Mako still reaching her senses.

_He__'__ll __have __to __deal __with __the __clothes __he __has __now._

Tifa walks out of the living room, and she opens windows in her house, breathing in the danky scent of the forest nearby and sighed.

"Looks like I'm stuck with this man till he wakes up."

Tifa continues to look out the window, breathing in deeply, trying to clear her house of the awful smell of Mako. The man on the couch stirred slightly, moaning in pain and Tifa turns her head to him, a small growl in the back of her throat, but the man doesn't wake up. She stops growling and looks closely at the man and notices some marks on him.

_He__'__s __not __from __the __institution__…__he __was __a __subject __there__…_

She studies his features and shakes her head, knowing just exactly what was going on with the man.

_SOLDIER. __So __they__'__re __still __at __it. __How __ridiculous__…_

She walks back to her kitchen and grabs a pair of scissors and a towel and heads back to the small living room, kneeling on the padded carpet and holds the scissors tightly in her right hand, and places the green towel on a nearby table, and loosely grips the man's lab coat, cutting a long line along the seams and she places the scissors aside. Carefully, she takes the pieces of cloth and pulls them out from under the man, and sets them on the table, wrinkling her nose up at the horrible stench it gave off. She takes the cloth and gently pads it against the man's skin, trying to dry him off and clean his skin. A few minutes later, she finishes up cleaning and sits on the carpeted floor, her legs stretched out, her head tilted up to the ceiling, her eyes closed.

_I __feel __sorry __for __this __man__… __He__'__s __been __under __such __pain __and __torment__…_

The soft sound of rustling comes from the couch and Tifa turns her head to it, peeking her red wine eye open. The man on the couch groans, bringing his hand up to his forehead, wiping some sweat off and he sits up on his elbows.

"W-what happened?"

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><p><em>~So yeah, I think this one was pretty good. For now.. R&amp;R S'il vous plaît et merci! ヽ（´ー｀）┌~<em>


	7. Chapter 6

_~~Yay! __New __chapter __up __guys! __Sorry __it__'__s __short, __but __I __needed __to __fix __it __out. __(^^)V __Enjoy!_

**Disclaimer:****Ah, ****how ****I ****wish ****I ****owned ****the ****game.*****sigh* ****Terribly ****so, ****I ****don****'****t.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 6<strong>

He didn't remember much. He didn't want to remember. The bumpy ride, the horrible smell of fear and anger, the terrifying growl. Cloud didn't like what was going on. He missed the warmth from Fire. The warmth that reminded him that he was still very much human, and that he wasn't a mutant, a monster. He continued to drift in and out of conscience. He remembered hearing Fire talk; he remembered the terrifying feeling of dread. He didn't want to remember anything after that, but he still does. The cruel coldness of the metal of the vehicle, the feel of something sharp and cold in his skin, the icy feeling of something shooting through his system. He didn't like the cold, and he didn't want to remember it.

"Fire."

He couldn't help but say her name, wanting to feel the warmth again, but it didn't come. Just the sound of a feral growl, and a cold rush of air, stinging his sensitive skin. For a while, he couldn't hear anything. He only smelt the distance of the forest, not so sweet anymore, not so earthy. It wasn't the same anymore, now that he could smell everything damn thing there. It wasn't the same as he wanted to remember it as. He wanted to remember the light laughter that came with the smells of the forest, not the horrible stench of fear and blood drenching the bare forest floor. It was terrifying to notice this now. Then, he felt the rush of warmth run across his stomach, and he shivered at the feeling of it. He heard a soft grunt come from Fire, and he felt his stomach squeeze in fear. The sweet scent of her enveloped him and he sighed in his head. He couldn't figure out why he was feeling this way, he's been with many women when he was with the marines. They all smelled the same, they all sounded the same. So, why was this woman making his nerves go haywire, and why, was her touch like fire? He felt soft plush against his back, and he heard Fire move around, and he felt something drip through his system again. Slowly, he drifted back into unconsciousness.

_Thank __you__…_

He tried waking up, tried to open his heavy eyes, tried to move and call to Fire. But he just couldn't do anything. So, he sat and waited for things to fix themselves. He didn't feel normal, he didn't feel right. It was getting cold, and his skin was prickling. Moving around, he tries to bring his hand up to his face, but his hand wouldn't cooperate just yet. Groaning, he slowly brings up elbows up, and props himself up.

"W-what happened?"

_She__'__s__…__Fire?_

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><p><em>Again, sorry this is short, but I'm posting another story right after this one!<em>


	8. Chapter 7

_~~Yay! __New __chapter __up __guys! __(^^)V __Enjoy!_

**Disclaimer: Yet again, don't own..**

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><p><strong>Chapter 7<strong>

Mako green. Exactly the color of the chemical that harms every single person on this planet, wreaking their bodies with spasms of pain, warping them into, some kind of monster. This _man_ lying in front of her, his body coursed with the very thing that changed her life. But he looked terrified of her, not aware of his full potential, and he shrunk back into the safety of the couch.

"W-wha- Who are you?"

Tifa flinched at his words, and she stood up quickly, her nose flaring from the other stench of Mako flowing from him. She stepped away from him, her red wine eyes slanting, and she hisses out one word through tightly clenched teeth.

"Tifa."

She rushes out of the room, putting her hand over her mouth in disgust. The man slowly sits up, wincing as pain shoots through his body, and he tries to walk to this 'Tifa' but his legs fall out from under him and he tumbles to the ground, falling on his arm.

"Son of a-…"

Groaning, he pushes himself up and slowly stands, his legs weak and jelly-like and he stumbles his way to Tifa, who is standing outside, hunched over the railing, breathing deeply.

Tifa's head was spinning, a headache throbbing through her skull. When the man woke up, it was like a Mako bomb had exploded in the room, his heart thrumming so loudly against his chest, the Mako pulsing through his body, everything echoing through her ears. She could smell his fear, boiling up in him. He knows exactly what she is, her eyes cannot hide it, her feral attitude, her very presence screamed 'danger', 'monster'. She couldn't stand being in there anymore, she couldn't take the stench. Answers or not, he needed to get out that smell.

"T-… Tifa right?"

Tifa whips her head around, her black hair flowing out behind her, her chocolate red wine eyes dilating, a low growl in her throat, and Cloud slowly backs away, pressing his back into the wall of the house. Her voice was coated with death, and her body shook with anger.

"You, this is your entire fault! That damned SOLDIER experiments, that's what caused this!"

Cloud stares at Tifa in shock, his heart thrumming in fear and he swallows nothing but air.

"What are you talking? I didn't do anything!"

Tifa scoffs, tossing her head in the other direction and she looks away from him.

"You're a SOLDIER, an experiment of the government in an attempt to harvest the Mako from Gaia into human bodies. As of now, there are more than 2,000 plus attempts of making SOLDIERS in what was Cosmo Canyon. In Midgar, the government set up first aid units near hospitals, but there were too man sick and injured from the Mako Industries explosions that they called in the military fro help in first aid. But it was too much to control. This war with Mako has long been going on since before we were born. The government requested that a group of scientists start making the SOLDIER serum, and start experiments as soon as possible. But we haven't seen one SOLDIER around. The injured from the Mako poisoning, they keep coming. The Infected overran the aid zone, and more military came. The Infected, they're attracted to Mako, the damned stuff those scientists are using. Their lab, it's the freaking hospital we're right next to!"

Tifa turns back around, glaring at Cloud, and he shudders, but looks her straight in the eyes.

"I. Am. A. Mutant. Its no thanks to the government that I am this way. My mutation is Chameleon-Hunter, third strain. I'm a doctor for the Marines, my rank is Master Sergeant. I'm the most dangerous soldier on my squad. My name is Tifa Lockhart."

She shifts her eyes away from his and rubs her temples, closing her eyes.

"What's your name SOLDIER?"

Cloud frowns and he tries to say his name but fails as a wave of memories flood his mind. He winces when he remembers everything.

"My name is Cloud Strife. I'm a translator for the Marines. I'm… a SOLDIER…"

He squints his eyes shut, trying to forget the experiments.

"There was a doctor, he-.. I got placed in a damn tube!"

Cloud's body starts to shake, and Tifa puts a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"You have to go back to them. I'm sorry, but you're not stable. It's not adapted to the Mako yet."

Cloud shakes his head furiously, his blond spikes shuddering as he does. He didn't want to go back, he couldn't go back. It was hell there, even if he wasn't there for long. He didn't want to be poked and prodded; he didn't want to be an experiment for them.

"No, I'm not going back. I can't go back."

He turns to Tifa, his eyes a sharp Mako green, a low growl in his throat.

"And you won't make me."

Tifa opens her eyes, her eyes dilated, a low feral growl deep in her throat.

"SOLDIER, don't test me. You will go back. You aren't stable, and you definitely aren't handling the Mako properly."

Cloud scoffs, rolling his dark Mako green eyes and he stands in a defensive position.

"I don't want to. Those men, they're crazy! They shouldn't be doing those kinds of experiments! They're bribing men into some kind of sick joke!"

Cloud clenched his fists in anger, his body shaking.

"I'm not going back there."

He stands straight, his blonde spikes covering his eyes, but he stares Tifa straight in her eyes.

"And there no way you can make me."

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><p><em>Muahaha, CLIFFY! :3 It's gonna be awhile till I post the next chapter up guys! So, yeah, I apologize in advance. *bows*<em>


	9. Question!

So guys, I was wondering.

I have a few chapters of Yuffie I could bring in, but note, I will not bring the whole crew in. I've gotten a lot of chapters written, but I have to edit them so they're adjusted to this story. And again, thanks guys for reading this!

PM me or just write a Review!

Again, thanks!

~Umi out!


	10. Chapter 8

_~~Yay! __New __chapter __up __guys! __(^^)V __Enjoy!_

**Disclaimer: Yet again, don't own..**

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><p><strong>Chapter 8<strong>

Tifa stared at the man standing in front of her. How could he not be afraid of her? She was a Mutant, and a powerful one for that fact. Yet here he was, standing in a defensive position, ready to fight her. He was adamant about not going back to the scientists; he was prepared to fight her. Growling, she holds her hands in loose fists at her sides, crouching and she grins.

"I won't make you? Ha, this will be easy."

Tifa watches as something flickers across Cloud's Mako lightning blue eyes and she smirks, dashing towards him, her body a blur to the human eye. Startled, Cloud flinches back in an attempt to dodge Tifa and barely skims past her now clawed hand, her sharp claws nicking his skin. The brunette huffs, and she turns her head to the side, her eyes slanting like a cat's and Cloud's body freezes up as he's backing away from Tifa and she smirks deviously.

"I told you this would be easy."

She circles around him, grinning and she taps his forehead.

"Pathetic SOLDIERS. I'd of thought that they'd at least prepared you so that no one could probe your minds. It's such a pity. You'd of been a great fighter."

Cloud grinds his teeth together as he tries to move, but gives up, sweat dripping from his forehead and his eyes follows Tifa as she walks around him, glaring at her.

"Oh, Hun that sure has hell isn't going to work. Glaring isn't the best tactic in the world."

She smirks at him, and her eyes darken and she grins sadistically as she sees pain cross through his face.

"Oh, the joy in this. You haven't realized what I am capable of doing yet, have you?"

Cloud looks at her through bleary eyes, confusion and pain mixed in his Mako blue eyes. He couldn't believe the pain that was coursing through his mind. He was practically reliving a nightmare in his mind, his body being broken and torn apart, being sewn back together painfully. Through the searing pain, he tried to break through it and find the reality. Or was this reality?

"Ps-psychic."

Tifa, startled that he could even talk, whirled around and got close enough to be touching noses with him.

"How the hell are you able to talk? You... you can't be doing that."

Cloud grinned through the pain and moved slightly, and when he could feel that he could move finally, he head butted Tifa, sending her back a little.

"I'm not the average SOLDIER. I am different. I am me only."

But the nightmare ensued in his mind, and he winced, but rushed forward and swept low, knocking Tifa off her feet and to the floor. She caught herself and flipped back up, stalking closer to Cloud, smirking.

"Average... ha. There's no such thing. You can't even fight properly."

Tifa landed a perfect roundhouse kick to his stomach, and as he kneeled over, she punched his jaw up, satisfied when she heard a small crack and she watches as he falls back, holding his jaw, his mouth bloody.

"I told you, you can't fight."

She walks over to him, but as she reaches him, he twists around, kicking her feet out from under her and he stands up, his foot on her neck and he smirks, wiping the blood from his mouth, the pain in his eyes gone, but a searing anger replaces it.

"Don't ever think I can't."

Tifa laughs, lying on the ground and she looks up at him, a whisper of terror in her eyes and Cloud relaxes slightly.

"Cloud, do you really think less of me?"

She watches as he relaxes, but he's trying to fight it, and she just huffs.

"Now you're making this difficult."

She shoves his leg aside and watches as he just stands there, immobilized yet again and his eyes slowly close, but his jaw is tight, urging to fight her. But she smirks on the ground, slowly standing, her voice soothing, a faint whisper and she leans to his ear, brushing her lips across it.

"Don't fight it. There's no reason to be difficult. Fall into the darkness."

She smirks as Cloud slowly relaxes, his jaw slacking and he crumples to the floor, his eyes completely closed, his body just a crumpled mess on the ground. Sighing, she slides to the floor, holding her head, breathing deeply, and she closes her eyes.

_That's the most I've ever had to do._

She looks up and peers over to Cloud's crumpled body and she takes a deep breath in, attempting to relax.

_Cloud... You're definitely not the average SOLDIER. Nor the average person. _

Shaking her head, she stands up, brushing a strand of her hair from her face and she picks Cloud up, grunting from the heavy weight of him.

_Crap, man, loose some weight already. _

"Back to Hell. What a great place to go back to."

Tifa gets to the truck she had and puts Cloud in the back, closing the back door tight and she walks back into her house, searching for the keys to the vehicle. She stopped at the couch that Cloud had been on, wrinkling her nose at the stench and she spots the keys near the floor, and she grabs it, clenching the keys in her hand tightly. She knew it was going to be a long time till she was able to come back to this little place she called home. She smiles, just the corner of her mouth turning up, and she quickly turns away.

_It's best to not linger._

Not even a minute later, Tifa's on the road, with Cloud still passed out in the back, her thoughts about her home tossed into the back of her mind, and she concentrates on getting the foolish SOLDIER back to the people that can actually help him.

"Fools. This world is corrupted and they're still."

She slams her foot down on the gas, the truck groaning as it speeds off to the make-shift base, leaving a cloud of dirt in its wake. 

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><p><em>Sorry this one is kinda short, and soooo sorry this is really late! I got stuck in writer's block, but I have come prepared to write even more now! New music helps a bunch, so, just wait to see even more guys!<em>


	11. Chapter 9

_Yup, loads of chapters today! Enjoy!_

**Disclaimer: Yet again, don't own...**

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><p><strong>Chapter 9<strong>

_Ah. The wailing and crying of the damned._

Tifa smiled remorsefully as she bandaged one of her patient's wounds, a bite from one of the Infected. The man laying there, soon to be an Infected, trashed about in his cot, the restraints barely keeping him down. Chocolate wine eyes traveled down to meet bloodshot eyes filled with pain, and a hint of sadness crossed through the chocolate wine eyes.

"Would you rather be dead, or alive as an Infected?"

The man, not clearly understanding what Tifa was saying, said what he only needed.

"Death."

Tifa turns her head away as she heard a flat line from his heart monitor and she watches as some of the nurses on staff rushed over and tried to revive the man.

"There's no point. Ask, and you shall receive."

One of the nurses turns over to Tifa, their eyes wide with shock.

"MSG Lockhart?"

"He asked for death. I could only comply with his request, and killed him. Don't worry, he didn't feel pain."

"But MSG Lockhart! It's against our ethic-"

"Do you think I give a damn about ethics now? This is the end, you fool. That man was going to die either way. Would you rather have him die as a human, or one of the Infected?"

The nurse looked away, watching as the other nurses covered the man's body and wheeled him away.

"It's still not right Tifa. He had a family."

"Family or not, it's what he wanted."

With that, Tifa walked away, her posture weary and her clothes bloodied.

"I hope you're better off Cloud."

_*flashback*_

A medic truck came screeching to a halt at the entrance to the rundown hospital and a woman with a military uniform and long black hair walked out of the driver's side and strode to the back of the truck.

"MSG Lockhart! You're back!"

Tifa turned to the voice and noticed who it was and she rolled her eyes and crawled into the back of the truck and got Cloud and pulled him out before carrying him over her shoulder.

"What do you want Jones? I don't have time for this."

SSG Jones continued after Tifa after she had turned away from him and noticed the spiky haired blond was being carried by the MSG.

"You brought him back. Who is he anyway?"

"SOLDIER Cloud Strife."

_A fool._

"I thought those guys were still working on getting the genes right for those guys?"

"Apparently, they got it down."

Just as Tifa reached the doors to the hospital, she stops and stares through the windows of the doors and she watches as no one appears in the empty hallways. She huffs at the weight of Cloud and she turns her head to Jones and he cringes, stepping back. Tifa's eyes had darkened to nearly two black discs, a frown on her lips.

"Jones, if you don't get the hell out of here, I'll kill you."

Jones slowly retreats away, and Tifa smirks as her eyes go back to her chocolate wine color and she shoves open the doors to the hospital and walks around the halls. But something felt off, and she sniffed the air and nearly gagged at the smell of Mako filled her mind and she shakes it off, and follows the awful smell of it to the Mako into a room filled with scientists and experiments in tubes. She gawks at the site of so many experiments and she looks around for someone, but notices a little group of scientists huddled around in a circle around one of the experiments and she strains to hear what they're saying.

"We lost him; he was the one that was going to get everything in place!"

"What do we do now? Just, continue to find another one or what? We don't have enough time to find another one like him."

"Calm down you fools. I think it's time we let them loose. Whatever is left of this government is going to collapse yet and someone's going to need to take control of it. We're the closest people that possibly can."

"It's going to happen soon anyway. We better make it fast."

Tifa's arm brushed against one of the vials on top of a counter and it came crashing down to the ground and she jumps back as the glass shatters on contact and flies across the floor. The scientists turn to the sound of the shattering glass and they quickly stride over to Tifa, noticing a man on her shoulder and they turn her around without warning and notice exactly who it is and takes him from her.

"Where did you find him?"

Tifa, slightly startled, doesn't answer right away and she stutters her answer out.

"O-on the ground outside sir."

She stands up straighter, now in her position of a high ranked military soldier.

"Good, so he didn't go too far away."

The scientist turns his head to her, a smile on his face, and he asks her a single question.

"Do you know what he is?"

Tifa stands stiff, and she clenches her fists and she shakes her head firmly.

"No sir, I do not."

"Good. Would you like a reward for bringing him back here…?"

He searches for her name tag, unable to find it on her uniform and Tifa curses under her breath for leaving her tags behind.

"Master Sergeant Tifa Lockhart, sir."

"Ms. Lockhart."

"No sir, it's my duty to do so and I'm glad of just that."

The scientist smirks and he turns away and motions for the other scientists to take Cloud to the back, and one of the men there cleans up the dropped vial.

"Thank you for your assistance Ms. Lockhart, you're duty was well served."

She nods, and slowly walks out, not looking back, thoughts colliding in her mind with the conversation she just overheard.

_Was it a good idea to take him back?_

As she walked out of the hospital, she noticed SSG Jones sitting on the truck and he hops down and runs up to her.

"Yo, you okay? You don't look so good."

Tifa waves it off and she walks over to the truck and she starts the engine, sitting there for awhile and Jones climbs into the passenger side seat and stares at Tifa.

"This is the first time you've never threatened me. What's going on? What happened in there?"

"The government."

"What?"

Tifa shakes her head and she drives the truck back to its original place and steps out of the truck and goes back to the medic's barracks, Jones quickly following her.

"Lockhart! What the hell happened there?"

Tifa turns back to him, and she glares at him, barely putting any effort into it, and Jones' shoulders slack.

"It's best to stay out of it Jones. You try and snoop, you'll end up in the worst position ever."

She walks into the barracks and disappears without another word.

_*end flashback*_

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><p>Fin for now!<p> 


	12. Chapter 10

_~~Yay! __New __chapter __up __guys! And a totally new person!_

**Disclaimer: Yet again, don't own.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 10<strong>

The sounds of night were as they always had been in this god forsaken place. The shrieks of mutants getting cut down by a spray of lead, the groans and hisses of the damned, and the slice of the helicopter blades in the air. There once was a constant wail of sirens, but they had long since disappeared. Everyone fought for themselves and in a world where your only hope was to run and run fast and you tended to forget that others existed. This new lifestyle was hard to grow accustomed too, due to the daily struggle for survival. But if you were anything like Aerith Gainsborough, you wouldn't be too worried about this 'foreign' world you now lived. Not if it was so like your former way of living. Aerith had been a reclusive, socially inept creature before the GE War. Maybe that's why she's lived this long without problem. Even before this mess happened, even before her symptoms began to bleed through, she avoided people like the world had been going to shit anyway. Now, that it had collapsed in on itself, she still can't bring herself to care.  
>Aerith stalked through the crumbled wreckage of her old home, hearing the crunch of a photo frame beneath her boot. A single thought dashed through her brain at how her step-mother would have freaked if she had caught Aerith breaking anything in her house, especially with such carelessness. Aerith crushed the thought without remorse. That woman was dead. And she didn't care if she broke anything of Ifalna Gainsborough. She dug her boot into the broken shards a little more forcefully, relishing in the hiss of the shards as they broke down even more. With that, she moved forward. The living room was absolutely trashed, anything of value gone. The small TV, the DVD player, all their movies and memories, taken without a second thought. Somehow, she remained eerily calm within this chaotic environment, holding heavily onto her equally chaotic emotions. She moved across the room, eyes locked firmly on the door to her father's old study. The door handle was torn off and deep scratches adorned the cheery wood door. She lifted her and ran her fingers along the grooves. They fit. A mutant did this. She felt a sneer tweak her lips. 'Sickening. Stupid, filthy creatures. They decide to bring their sickness into my home and destroy and pilfer and take away everything I had without a single thought. I hate them, I HATE THEM.' Angrily, she pressed her hand against the door with a shove, the door yielded but halted in its course. This surprised her, whatever was blocking the door? The only way was in; she couldn't pull the door back, so she pressed her shoulder against the doorway and pushed. And pushed. She heard the distinct slip of papers, lots of papers, go crashing to the floor. Aerith craned her neck around the door to survey what mess was left. Nothing of value, of course. But paper...paper was strung out everywhere. The filing cabinets were pulled out and the doors on the roll top desks were open. She walked into the middle of the room, incredulity and anger pouring off her in waves. Her father's work and meticulous lifestyle, something in which she had shared, was torn to shreds. Her fists were shaking by her sides. Very pissed off would be an understatement. Her green eyes cut over everything that had been left behind. Writing of this and that, nothing stood out. Aerith moved to her father's old desk and rifled through what was left. At first, going through the stack revealed nothing to her. But her eyes caught on a legal document, something of importance judging by the weight of it and the thick texture. She pulled it away from the stack and dropped the others away, her eyes long since accustomed to the dark of the room. 'What is this-? SOLDIER? 'Her eyes darted down the paragraphs, feeling anxiety hold her. 'A program that we have created to rid the mutants...send in any information you have about hideouts or sightings...please, we can get rid of this if we stand against them, if we band together...' At the bottom, a number. 'United we stand, divided they fall.' Only the emptiness of the room witnessed her dark smile.<p>

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><p><em>Again, sorry this is short. I don't write much for entrances of other characters. ^^" I hope you like it anyway! <em>


	13. UpdateApology!

Oh my! It's been quite a long time since I've updated! I'm so sorry! *bows in apology* Been super busy for such a long time, but now I have all the time I want to start back with writing! :D You won't be disappointed! I'll have an update, hopefully by tonight!

And, for now, I'm off to write!

~Umi out!


	14. Chapter 11

_~~Phew, I got a new chapter up! Hope this is a good one, and I hope that all makes sense. Now, on with the story!_

**Disclaimer: Don't own, sadly****. XD**

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><p><strong>Chapter 11<strong>

Cloud awoke to the same murky green, a mask over his face so he could breathe, and that familiar small tube. His whole body was restrained, this time with metal instead of that itchy leather. He tried looking around, but that stupid film of green covered his eyes. Blinking, he finally got the color to fade, but he didn't see anything in front of him. It was all gray, bleak and boring. His blonde spikes felt heavy on his head. His whole body felt tired, and his brain felt fuzzy, like he had just gotten into a fight and was knocked out. Realization hit him, and his eyes went wide, and his heart started beating faster. That woman, Tifa, she put him back in here. Struggling, he jerks around in the small tube, trying to break free and suddenly the gray disappears and bright white light blinds Cloud, and he winces. As his eyes adjust to the light, he notices that doctor he had talked to earlier was standing in front of him.

"Tsk tsk Cloud. I'd of thought you'd know better than to try and break free."

The doctor smirked, holding a remote in his hands, and with the push of a button, electric shock travels through Cloud's body, causing his restrained body to lurch in pain. Cloud's lightning blue eyes roll to the back of his head, and he fights to stay conscious.

"Now Cloud, do you think you'll be fighting back anymore?"

Cloud turns his attention to the doctor, glaring at him, fighting at the restraints.

_You son of a bitch. I'll get back at you. _

The doctor laughed, and he went to a table, grabbing a syringe, filled with what looked like more Mako. He found Cloud's IV and inserted it into it, watching as the liquid traveled to Cloud's body and Cloud lurked forward as the Mako surged through is bloodstream. It felt like a burning icy feeling, like his body was going to freeze through. But the doctor just stood there, watching Cloud suffer through the Mako injection, writing down whatever he saw was important. As soon as the doctor thought that all the Mako had gone into his body, he clicked that damn button again, sending shock through Cloud's body once again. His body shuddered in pain, and the Mako seemed to boil at his blood. The pain seared through his body, and he couldn't take it anymore.

"Now Cloud, don't think all of this is over just yet."

The was a sound of glass breaking, and the doctor turns his head to it, a look of shock and horror on his face, and he drops the remote control, scrambling backwards and away from whatever was happening. Cloud tried to see what was happening, but there was a blur of black, red, and white and the doctor was gone, out of sight. Suddenly, he could see a face in front of him, familiar chocolate wine eyes staring right at his lighting green eyes. Cloud could feel his heart thumping loudly in his chest and he shook his head. He couldn't tell if he was scared or excited to see that woman.

"Why, hello there Cloud Strife. Looks like you're in a bind."

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><p><em>And finished! Hope you enjoyed! R&amp;R :D<em>


	15. Chapter 12

_~~Ok, new chapter! This is a little.. well, a lot longer, than the last chapter. Hope you enjoy it!_

**Disclaimer: Ah.. I digress.. I don't own this wonderful game..^^"**

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><p><strong>Chapter 12<strong>

Tifa stared at the man in that little compartment, well whatever it was. His face was partially covered due to that mask he was wearing, but she could still see his eyes, lightning green and filled with confusion and fear. Behind her, the doctor crawled across the floor and grabbed the remote, clicking a button that caused all of the Mako in the IV drip to flow into Cloud's veins. Clouds eyes went wide and he struggled in the restraints, thrashing about, and bubbles erupting everywhere. Tifa turned around, looking for the man and she saw him in a corner, grinning maliciously, holding the remote tightly in his hands.

"He won't be the same anymore now. He'll become one of those monsters."

Tifa growled lowly, swiftly walking over to the man, and she kicks the remote out of his hands, and she puts her boot to his neck, pressing him to the ground.

"You know, I hate guys like you. Always think they're the big shots of everything."

She pushed down harder on his neck, smirking at the sound of his choking, and she sighed, letting go of his neck, watching him gasp for air.

"Ah, think I'm going to let you off this easily?"

She smirks ruthlessly, kicking his temple and watches as he slides to the other side of the room, hitting his head on a metal table, his arm crunched up into his body in some ungainly position. Scoffing, she looks away from the man and turns back to Cloud, searching for a way for him to get out. It seemed that he had passed out in there. She searched for that remote the doctor of an ass had, but she found it in some liquid, bubbling and sizzling away to a much of pieces.

_Great._

Sighing, she backs up a little from the compartment Cloud was in, rolling her shoulders and cracks her hands.

_This is probably going to hurt_.

She rushes toward the compartment, her right hand clenched into a tight fist, raised behind her. As she brought her fist crashing into the thick glass, she winced at the pain, but smirked in satisfaction as it started to crack. She backed up just slightly more, and aimed a kick to where she had punched, watching as the glass shattered to pieces and the Mako filled water fell, Cloud suspended by the restraints. Tifa was nearly washed away due to the force of all that water, but she stepped to the side to miss the full force of all the water. As the water all fell away, she turned back to Cloud, finding the restraints metal and she growls under her breath.

_Damn. That button is what I need now_.

In the background, she heard an alarm blaring and someone screaming words through a microphone over the intercom about a break in. Tifa rolled her eyes, searching for a way to get Cloud out of the restraints. Then she remembered the remote, melting in that liquid. She turned around, looking for that liquid and she finds it, with pieces of the remote still dissolving, and grabs the beaker, heading back to Cloud.

_Let's hope this works_.

She pours a little of the liquid, now assuming to be acid, onto the hand restraints, waiting for it to react. Nothing happened at first, but she heard the sizzling, and she grinned.

"Bingo."

She poured more on the metal, following with the ankle restraints and she tosses the beaker away, careless as to where it goes. She watches as the metal melts away, watching as Cloud slowly slips out of the metal and she catches him before he falls.

"Oof. You're kinda heavy Cloud. Lay of the fatty foods why don't ya."

She checks his pulse, noticing it's beating abnormally fast. She wrinkles her nose as most of the Mako is now drenched on her clothes now too, a headache coming on.

_Oh goody, this boy is totally in a coma and I'm going to get sick just carrying him. _

She tosses him over her shoulder, and she notices that there are men in military uniform waiting outside the room, guns aimed at the door. She reaches around her waist for her gun but finds it missing, and she slumps. She forgot that she left it in the van outside and she rolls her eyes.

_I'm so smart. Worried too much about this idiot to get my gear ready. _

She looks around for a weapon that she could easily use, but sighs. Any weapon that she finds in here would be chemicals, and she'd rather not experiment with them. She'd have to result to using her mutant abilities. She looked through the thick glass separating her and the rest of the military out there, looking at every individual until she found one with eyes that looked terrified.

"Gotcha."

Her eyes slanted like a cats, and she stared at the boy out there holding his gun for dear life, and his eyes went blank.

_Bring me the gun. _

The boy, nodded slowly, his eyes blank and expressionless and he walks out of his ranks, heading to the door and the leading officer yells at the boy.

"Private! Get your ass back into formation!"

The people in the line all started whispering, and one of the private's friend grabs his shoulder.

"Dude, what the hell? You heard the Sergeant. Get back in line."

Tifa laughed inside the room, and everyone turned to her, staring at her. They heard her through that thick glass and metal.

"Oh come on. Don't be scared. All he's doing is listening to his orders of the higher ranks."

Everyone in the company starts backing away, but the Sergeant yells out to his men.

"What the hell are you doing? Stand your goddamn ground!"

Everyone stops, but the private is still heading toward the room with Tifa and Cloud in it.

"PRIVATE! I said to get your ass back over in formation!"

But the boy wouldn't listen, still in his daze that Tifa had put him under. He walked to the door, and it opened automatically, and he walked in, handing Tifa the M4 Carbine. She smiled, patting the boys head and his eyes rolled back and he fell to the floor.

"God. I love being a Mutant."

She checks the safety on the gun, clicking it off and aims it right at the door as she walks closer to it. As she gets close to the sensor of the door, she makes sure that Cloud is on her back, and she takes a deep breath in.

"Let's do this."

With one more step, the door opened, and she opened fire on all the men there, watching as they fell to the floor. She ran out, faster than normal humans and she continued to open fire on the men there. As she ran out of ammo, she threw the gun aside and fought her way through the line, managing to keep Cloud on her back and she pushed her way out. She reaches the Sergeant and grins.

"Hey there, Sergeant. Long time no see. You remember me, right? Master Sergeant Tifa Lockheart? Yup, I'm a much higher rank than you, so that private you yelled at? He's definitely going to listen to me more than you."

Smirking, she tosses an elbow at his stomach, kneeing him in the face as he kneels down from being elbowed in the gut and she watches as she falls back.

"Oh, thanks for the fun by the way."

She runs out of the hallway and navigates her way through the halls, running into a few scientists who are too scared to fight her. Eventually, she makes her way out of the building and she finds her van, and she opens the back door, putting Cloud in the back of it and she climbs into the back, closing the door behind her just as bullets hit her. Another platoon was waiting outside for her apparently. The continued to open fire on the door, but thankfully, her van was bulletproof. She climbed to the front, grabbing her keys from her pocket and she starts the engine.

"Let's get the hell out of here."

She rams her foot onto the gas, and the van screeches away from the building, from the platoon firing at her, from the sick and dying people, and from her job.

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><p><em>And another chapter finished! I'm extremely sorry that I'm so slow with updating! I've been writing more with other stories to see if I could get some more.. fame. Haha, hope you enjoyed it! R&amp;R please :D<em>

_-Umi_


	16. Update and Sneak Peek!

Again! I'm reaaaaaly sorry about the delay in stories... My computer has.. well, been a jerk and it won't let me do any posting. I'm using a friends now, so hopefully I get mine back up and running! :D

How bout a sneak peek in the next chapter? Hm.. that's a good idea.

**Chapter 13 Sneak Peek**

There was an annoying sound of whistling coming from the back of the van, the wind getting trapped in the van due to the bullet holes shot from those ridiculous soldiers at the base. Thankfully, Lockheart was smart. And she knew what she was doing. With a sigh, she glared at the back of the van, noticing several gaping holes in the back. The blonde on the ground though was unharmed, still conked out on the ground of the van. His spikey hair looked like it had some blood on it, but she wasn't sure whose it was. Maybe it was hers, maybe not. Right now, she was worried about getting the hell outta town and away from everything. It was going to be a new start, hopefully. But those men.

She sighed, staring at the road.

_What did they want?_

She drummed her fingers on the steering wheel, thinking as she drove, until she heard a groan in the back of the van, and she slowed, turning her head to the back and saw the blonde stirring awake.

"Hey there sleepy head."

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><p>And an end to the preview! Yup.. it was short.. sorta. but i wanted y'all to have something.. hehe. Hope that I post soon! (^o^)b<p>

Umi out!


	17. Chapter 13

_~~I'm back!I'm so sorry for practically a year being away! Dx I promise to upload every week!_

**Disclaimer: All credit goes to Square Enix, etc etc. Don't own :/**

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><p><strong>Chapter 13<strong>

There was an annoying sound of whistling coming from the back of the van, the wind getting trapped in the van due to the bullet holes shot from those ridiculous soldiers at the base. Thankfully, Lockheart was smart. And she knew what she was doing. With a sigh, she glared at the back of the van, noticing several gaping holes in the back. The blonde on the ground though was unharmed, still conked out on the ground of the van. His spikey hair looked like it had some blood on it, but she wasn't sure whose it was. Maybe it was hers, maybe not. Right now, she was worried about getting the hell outta town and away from everything. It was going to be a new start, hopefully. But those men.

She sighed, staring at the road.

_What did they want?_

She drummed her fingers on the steering wheel, thinking as she drove, until she heard a groan in the back of the van, and she slowed, turning her head to the back and saw the blonde stirring awake.

"Hey there sleepy head."

The blonde glanced up at her, his lightning green eyes squinting up as he tried to determine where he was. He noticed a familiar, yet blurry face.

"You!"

He jolts up, his heart hammering in his chest. '_Fire'_, or as she's better known as, Tifa. He looks around the area, noticing he's actually in a military issued van. And there were bullet holes decorating the exterior of the van.

"What the hell did you do Tifa?"

She shrugs, turning her head back to the bare dirt road. She could smell the Mako in the air, but thankfully, those holes were helping her out greatly. She couldn't get distracted now. She needed to get out of dodge and fast.

"I just saved your ass. Twice now. But who is counting?"

Cloud stares at her, no emotion on his face. He couldn't believe this woman. She would risk everything, to save some SOLDIER that she possibly hated? He didn't understand her, and yet he really didn't want to.

"Why did you save me Tifa?"

A shiver crawls down her spine when he asks her that question. She actually didn't know the answer to that. She just, had to save him. He wasn't like anyone else in that program. He didn't deserve to be stuck in that hell hole. She couldn't even answer the damn question.

"You'll know in due time Cloud."

The young blonde sighs, and he runs a hand through his spikey hair, feeling something in his hair and he takes a look at his hand, and he stares at the blood on his hand.

"Tifa?"

She glances back and notices that he's spotted the blood.

"Oh, that. Ah, right. I forgot to clean you up. I can't tell if that's from me, or if you're wounded."

He stares at his hand, confused and shocked. Slowly he gets to a kneeling position and looks for a medkit, hoping that he'll find one.

"Oh, by the way Cloud, you won't find it."

"A medkit? How did you know I was looking for one?"

"Because, I already looked for it. And, it's obvious. You see blood, you try to fix something."

Cloud sighs in defeat, and he crawled to the front seat, sitting down in the passenger. He stared out at the road, watching as nothing but dirt passed by them.

"Where are we going?"

Tifa glances at him through the corner of her eye. His face, it's much sharper in the daylight. He has scars, he's worn and torn. She turned her attention back to the road, drumming her fingers on the wheel, humming a tune.

"Somewhere Cloud. I need to change out of these clothes."

She goes back to humming, staring at the road, trying to breath normally with the increase of Mako in the air around her. Cloud listens to her hum, and something about it triggers something in the back of his mind. The song, it sounds familiar to him. Something of home and snow. He closed his eyes, hoping a memory would come to mind, but nothing happens. He keeps his eyes closed, relishing in the free ride and an awkward silence.

_What happens when we get to where we're going Tifa.. What then?_

Tifa stares at the road, letting her thoughts wander. It's been awhile since she's been home. Maybe, she could go there.

_Should I go see them though? I left without saying goodbye._

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><p>Umi here~ Sorry I've been gone so long, as usual. R&amp;R :3 I promise to update soon~<p> 


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